


Coming Out of the Closet

by Chrystie



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-20
Updated: 2016-02-20
Packaged: 2018-05-22 00:19:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,316
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6063640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chrystie/pseuds/Chrystie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was just a dumb little crush, Kuroko would forget about it eventually. At least he hoped he would.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Coming Out of the Closet

**Author's Note:**

  * For [imabignerd](https://archiveofourown.org/users/imabignerd/gifts).



> HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!!! I WAS PRODUCTIVE TODAY :D

It was nothing more than a simple crush. Kuroko realized this as his eyes were almost instinctively drawn, not for the first time, towards the very attractive blond a row in front of him and five seats to the left in the large auditorium lecture hall. His professor’s droning seemed to have become completely muted as he watched the blond scratch his head with his pen and practically flop down onto the table from boredom.

It was dumb, and not to mention a little creepy, Kuroko knew, as he took in every small action that the blond man made, engraining them into his memory for no reason other than the fact that he found the man intriguing and beautiful. It was even more ridiculous to him as, while Kuroko knew that this man’s birthday was on June 18th and that he lived on campus and that he liked to karaoke, Kuroko had no idea what the man’s name was.

Of course he had picked up all those small tidbits from ‘accidentally’ listening in on small conversations the man had with other classmates yet he could never seem to catch the man’s full name. The most he had ever gotten before it was drowned out by the loudness of the classroom was ‘Ki’. It was from that one small revelation that he started referring to the man, even if it was only in his head, as Ki-san. Kuroko couldn’t really say the nickname fit him, but it was all he had.

Kuroko supposed it didn’t really matter though. Ki-san was only in one of his classes, which was an elective class. Once the semester ended he would likely never see Ki-san again and Kuroko was fine with that. It was just a simple crush after all. Kuroko would eventually forget about Ki-san with little to no difficulty.

At least that was what he had hoped.

The following semester Kuroko was re-assigned a dorm room along with a new roommate. Apparently his new roommate’s name was Kise Ryouta and Kuroko wasn’t sure why but the name sounded oddly familiar to him.

He found his new room at the end of the hall farthest away from the washroom, the door slightly open. Pushing into the room Kuroko froze for a split second at the sight that greeted him, or rather at the sight of the person that greeted him. “Ki-san?” Kuroko all but breathed out in shock.

Kuroko gave the man in front of him a thorough once over to ensure that his eyes weren’t lying to him. No matter how many times he blinked or rubbed his eyes, standing in front of him was the tall, beautiful blond man he had spent the better part of last semester staring at. The blond man he was supposed to be spending the current semester forgetting, something he couldn’t exactly do when he was living with said man.

Ki-san - no, Kuroko shouldn’t call him that when he now knew the man’s full name - Kise turned around at the sound of Kuroko’s voice that came out in a whisper. He looked a somewhat lost and confused at first, unable to spot where the voice had come from before his eyes finally zeroed in on Kuroko after a good amount of searching the doorway, his eyes widening in shock as he did.

The shock didn’t seem to last long, as a second later he reverted to happy and upbeat, greeting Kuroko with a large smile that took Kuroko’s breath away. “Hiya! I haven’t heard anyone use that nickname on me before,” Kise laughed and Kuroko felt an odd flurry in his stomach just from the simple sound. “You must be Kuroko-kun, my new roommate. I'm Kise Ryouta, though you probably already knew that.”

Ki-san… Ki. As in the Ki in Kise. Ki as in the Ki in Kise Ryouta. Kuroko mentally hit himself for not being able to put together those two simple clues. Outwardly however, Kuroko had regained his composure and had managed to put up his usual air of aloofness. “Yes, It’s nice to meet you, Kise-san.”

“Did I hear you call me Ki-san earlier?” Kise asked with a slight tilt of his head, “It’s not a nickname people have called me by before so it’s kinda interesting. Most people usually call me Ryou-chan if they want to go for a nickname.”

Kuroko tensed, he had been hoping Ki-san, no, Kise hadn't heard that. “No, I didn't, I said Kise-san.” Kuroko didn’t really sound convincing, even to his own ears but he still hoped that it sounded convincing enough to Kise.

“No, I’m pretty sure I heard Ki-san,” Kuroko could swear that the smile on Ki-san’s face was more than just a little teasing.

“No, I said Kise-san. I’m sure you misheard.” Kuroko knew that Ki-san wouldn’t buy much of what Kuroko said anymore but Kuroko could be stubborn in his own way.

“It's totally okay to call me by a nick name, y’know. Tons of people do it.” Ki-san gave a small laugh and Kuroko’s breath was stolen from him. The laugh was so much more mesmerizingly beautiful when it wasn't drowned out by the loud chatter of three hundred or so other students.

“No. I am perfectly fine with referring to you as Kise-san because that is what I had said.” Kuroko finally found the will somewhere within himself to look away from Ki-san and unglue himself from the doorway of their room. He placed his bags by the foot of the bed opposite of the one Ki-san seemed to have already claimed and busied himself with minor unpacking, more as a way to not get lost in Ki-san’s good looks again.

Ki-san laughed his beautiful laugh again and Kuroko had force himself to think of it as background noise lest he get swept away by it again. “Whatever you say.” Kuroko felt a hand pat down on his shoulder and he tensed. Ki-san continued as if he didn’t notice how he was affecting Kuroko, and maybe he didn’t but Kuroko couldn’t be sure, “Kise is just fine though. The ‘san’ makes it sound all stuffy and formal.”

Kuroko didn’t give Ki-san anymore acknowledgement of the hand amiably placed on his shoulder and continued to distract himself by rummaging through his overstuffed backpack, “Then Kise-kun it is.” Kuroko wanted to keep his relationship with Ki-san impersonal for as long as he possibly could while living with him. It gave him a better chance at keeping him simple crush as just a crush, and hopefully allowed him to do what he’d originally planned to do and get over it.

“See, that sounds better,” Ki-san moved his hand from Kuroko’s shoulder to ruffle Kuroko’s hair before turning back to his side of the room. If Kuroko hadn’t already been tense with Ki-san simply touching his shoulder, he sure was after feeling Ki-san’s long fingers run through his hair. It was then that Kuroko realized that forgetting his crush was a fruitless hope at best.

* * *

 

As time passed, Kuroko had mixed feelings on how living with Kise - who he had managed to stop mentally calling Ki-san two weeks into the new semester - affected his crush on him. On the one hand, living with Kise allowed him to see more of Kise’s amazingly attractive and endearing qualities. Things such as Kise’s contagious enthusiasm and strong will and his amazing way with people. However it also allowed him to see the not so charismatic sides of Kise as well, like his very constant whining, or his lack of manners towards those he deems as unimportant, or, as Kuroko had the unfortunate pleasure of discovering first hand, his lack of effort towards anything he doesn’t find an interest in.

Kuroko had been taking his customary nap that he normally took after his long day of four back to back classes when Kise had all but pounced onto his bed with a shout of “Kurokocchi!” Kuroko jolted awake into a sitting position and blearily looked to the obtrusive weight on the side of his bed.

Taking a quick glance at the time he noted that Kise had woken him a good hour before his alarm was set to go off, not something Kise usually did. “Kise-kun? Did you need something?”

“Kurokocchi,” Kise held up a piece of paper that he recognized as the test he got back earlier in one of his classes, “Are all your grades this good?!”

Kuroko needed at least another minute to fully adjust to waking up to such a bright presence such as Kise before he was ready to process and answer questions, so he simply blinked at him in confusion for a few seconds before responding with, “Could you repeat that quieter, slower and less excited?”

Instead of getting off his bed and speaking in a normal, human way that Kuroko usually expected people to act when dealing with someone who had just woken up, Kise simply held the test closer to Kuroko’s face and repeated his question with the exact same excitement, in the exact same volume, at the exact same speed, “Your grades! Are they all this good?!”

“Yes?” Kuroko slid himself away from Kise in hopes that it would make the volume more bearable, only for Kise to inch himself even closer to Kuroko than he originally was, with much more excitement in his eyes.

Luckily Kise’s next few words came out closer to a whisper, “Teach me your ways.”

Kuroko knit his eyebrows together, “Kise-kun, did you wake me up _to tutor you?_ ” Kuroko may not have been a cranky riser, but that didn’t mean he appreciated being woken up during his nap _before his alarm went off_ for something that could have very much waited.

Kise nervously laughed and seemed to grow a little flustered, or maybe he was nervous, Kuroko couldn’t really tell, not when the only thing on his mind was going back to sleep. “I-um-well-maybe?”

Kuroko repressed a groan and promptly fell back down onto the bed, pulling the covers up to his chin. “Ask me again in an hour, _after_ my alarm wakes me up.” Kuroko turned onto his side, away from Kise and closed his eyes to fall back asleep, at least, that was what he wanted to do.

“Does that mean Kurokocchi will tutor me?!” Kise all but yelled in Kuroko’s ear.

Kuroko was tempted to push Kise off the bed if he wasn’t going to get off himself. “Kise-kun, let me sleep,” Kuroko grit out through his teeth in the most calm, even, tone he could muster. He heard a small ‘eep’ and felt the weight shift off his bed. Without another word towards Kise, Kuroko let himself drift back into slumber.

When he woke again, this time thankfully due to his alarm going off, he found Kise sitting on the ground with a book open in front of him as he tried to balance a pencil on his nose. “I see you’ve been productive in your studying,” Kuroko said blandly.

Kise stiffened and the pencil dropped, hitting him in the forehead. “‘Morning Kurokocchi,” Kise practically sung, seemingly unfazed by Kuroko’s accusation.

“If you’re worried about your grades maybe you should actually try to study,” Kuroko sighed, he could see this being more difficult than he’d prefer.

“But I was waiting for you to wake up. You said you’d teach me,” Kise pouted, something Kuroko had unfortunately gotten used to, not that it was any more effective now than it had been when Kuroko was first exposed to it.

“It might have been better for you to at least review before I woke up,” Kuroko reprimanded and again Kise pouted at him.

“But Kurokocchi is still gonna tutor me, right?” Kuroko could only sigh in response. He got off his bed and joined Kise on the floor.

“What did you need help in?” Kise pointed to almost every little concept or equation in almost every one of his classes. After Kuroko clarified that he couldn't help Kise in every single class, as he hadn't taken a majority of them, which Kise loudly whined about, they settled on the few classes that Kuroko _could_ help him with.

It didn't take very long into their study session before Kuroko realized what Kise's real problem was. “Kise-kun, how much effort do you put into paying attention in class and self studying?”

Kise looked as though he had been caught red handed and nervously laughed, “Um… enough?”

“Kise-kun,” Kuroko said sternly, “you have been able to perfectly memorize everything you've gone over with little to no help from me. I don’t think you need my help at all.”

Kise rapidly shook his head in disagreement, “No, I really, really need Kurokocchi’s help! You help me.... um… focus?” Kise blinked innocently at him while maintaining his pout.

Kuroko was not convinced. “Kise-kun, I think your problem isn’t focusing on studying, it’s putting in any effort to study at all.”

“But Kurokocchi, studying is so boring! You keeping me company at least makes it a little easier and more bearable!” Kise whined and Kuroko felt his heart skip a beat. Why did Kise have to be such a natural flirt when all it did was give Kuroko heart cramps.

“Besides, you don't really mind, right Kurokocchi? I mean you _do_ have a crush on me and all.” Kise had said it so casually as if it were a widely known fact and Kuroko, for all his composure, was sure he'd stopped breathing.

Kise knew. And from the way he'd said it, it sounded like he'd known for a while. Apparently all his secrecy and attempts to keep himself as outwardly indifferent to Kise's shows of physical affection were pointless.

Stiffly, Kuroko stood up, saying a quick, “Excuse me,” to Kise and made a beeline for the door.

“Wait! Wait! Kurokocchi, why are you leaving?!” Kise shot up and, thanks to the unfairness of long legs, he beat Kuroko to the door and blocked his escape.

Kuroko refused to meet Kise’s eyes, and instead turned towards their shared closet, opening it up and effectively slamming it shut before Kise could react. He huddled himself into a ball on the floor, burying his face into his knees. He had been so sure that he’d been doing a good job at hiding his feelings, had been pretty positive that he would get over his dumb crush before Kise could ever find out. Going over the past few months, he couldn’t really even determine when it was that Kise had found out or what it was that gave him away. Maybe Kise had caught him staring for too long, or maybe he’d noticed how Kuroko tended to lean a little into Kise’s overly friendly hugs. Maybe Kuroko had been more obvious than he realized.

Kuroko heard the closet door slide open but he couldn’t bring himself to look at Kise, not when his face was burning red, and he felt a little tempted to cry from frustration.

“Kurokocchi, is it really so bad that I know?” Kise asked, confusing clearly evident in his voice. Kuroko wanted to throw something at Kise for asking something so obvious but he wasn't about to just leave the safety of the ball he'd made himself so he simply gave a combination between a whine and a groan as a response,

That apparently wasn't enough to get Kise to leave him alone, not that he'd expected Kise to give him any respite in the first place. “Why is it bad? I've been waiting for you to confess for a while now.”

Kuroko's head shot up from where it hid between his knees to stare incredulously at Kise,  his face burning bright red and his mouth gaping to find the words to demand an explanation. Kise simply laughed at him with his mesmerizingly beautiful, if not sometimes annoying, laugh and Kuroko didn't think it was fair for Kise to still be able to do that, given the state he’d already put Kuroko in. “Kurokocchi, you're being really cute right now.” That prompted Kuroko to hurriedly hide his face back between his knees.

“That's unfair, Ki-san! You're being unfair!” Kuroko noticed his slip up a moment too late and he prayed to whatever deity that was watching him suffer to please let Kise not have noticed it.

“Ah! That's the nickname you called me on the first day we met!” Kise exclaimed clearly amused by the state Kuroko was in. “I don't know why you insisted on not using it. I kinda like it, it's cute.”

“Ki-san,”it came out as a whimper, and at this point Kuroko couldn't really bring himself to care too much, “please leave me to suffer in peace.”

“Eh? But why are you suffering?” Kuroko could practically hear Kise’s face twist in confusion and he'd thought that would be all Kise had to say, to which Kuroko would have responded with another whine but Kise continued, “I've had our first date planned for a while; I've just been waiting for you to confess.” And again Kuroko's head shot up to stare incredulously at Kise.

His surprise didn't last too long as realization washed over Kuroko and his expression turned to indignation. “I don't need your pity, Kise-kun.” He should've known this was how Kise would deal with Kuroko's stupid little crush. It was very Kise to be nice to him in this stupid little way before he turned him down with a trained regretful smile. Kuroko refused to be subjected to that.

Kise tilted his head to the side, giving Kuroko a look of what seemed like actual confusion, not that Kuroko really believed that look in the slightest. “Pity? What pity? I've been waiting to go on this date with you for a few months now.”

“Kise-kun,” Kuroko said with as much patience as he could muster, “if you plan to turn me down, please do so without the attempt to raise my hopes.” And again, Kise looked confused, but this time there was an added hint of insult in his expression.

“You know Kurokocchi, I've been sneaking glances at you, weirdly staring at you sleep and wanting to cuddle you while you make that really cute embarrassed face since the first month of the semester.” Kuroko knew that Kise had purposefully said everything slowly so that Kuroko would fully understand.

Kuroko felt heat travel up his face, but this time didn't try to hide it, “Please don't stare at me when I’m sleeping,” Kuroko quietly muttered, as if he wasn't also guilty of the same thing.

Kise's face seemed to light up instantly. He reached into the closet, tucking an arm under Kuroko's knees, and placing the other around his shoulders, Kise lifted and extracted Kuroko from his hiding place. “Now let's go on our date!” Kise cheered as Kuroko yelped and struggled to get out of his arms.

“Right now?! I'm still wearing pajamas and my hair's still a mess! Ki-san, please put me down!” Kise promptly ignored all of Kuroko's concerns, as he somehow opened their door even while holding Kuroko.

“You look cute Kurokocchi,” he stated happily, “Now, to the campus bakery!” Kise rushed off, while keeping a tight hold on Kuroko, who had taken to hiding his face in Kise's chest while keeping a tight hold on his shirt for dear life. They got tons of stares and laughs, all of which Kise didn't seem to mind, laughing along with them.

Somewhere along the way of being subjected to Kise's antics, Kuroko may have started to enjoy them just a little, not that he'd ever admit to that. Ki-san sure was a handful to have a crush on, but from the cheery smile he gave Kuroko throughout their entire date, and even after, Kuroko couldn't help but think maybe he was okay with that.


End file.
